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5 (mostly) free and easy ways to green your Fourth of July

Independence Day is here — are you ready? If you want to celebrate your Fourth the green way by freeing yourself from the shackles of unnecessary waste and energy usage but are low on funds and ideas, check out our five creative tips on how to green your holiday — they’re as easy on your wallet as they are hassle-free!

Substitute veggie dogs and burgers for hot dogs and hamburgers

Raising livestock uses an incredible amount of energy and releases tons of methane into the air. This year, try serving soy dogs and burgers instead of meat — they’re better for the environment and for your health. And a lot of times, people can’t even tell the difference!

Cost: $3-4 a box on average

Ask guests to carpool or walk

With people trying to save money, this one shouldn’t be too difficult at all. Plus, if you remind imbibers that the less cars there are, the less (responsible) drivers are needed, they’ll have yet another reason to carpool or walk.

Cost: nothing

Have a “Bring Your Own Cup” party

Plastic cups are one of the most wasteful parts of having a summer bash. Asking guests to bring their own cups means that no one will forget which cup is theirs, and you won’t need to clean up after them because they just take their dirty drinkware home with them!

Cost: nothing

Ask caterers to make it “Eco to go”

If you’re planning on ordering out for your party, use this simple phrase to tell restaurants that you would like minimal packaging, condiments and utensils. They might not know what you mean at first, but the more people use it, the more vendors will know what it means and that they should get with the program.

Buy your charcoal from sustainably managed forests

Not all charcoal is created equal. Check for the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) logo on the bag you buy to make sure it isn’t from an unsustainable source. And if you can use charcoal from the U.S. instead of from abroad, that’s even better!

Cost: Surprisingly, FSC-certified and U.S.-sourced charcoal isn’t too much more expensive than the alternative.

Hi,
I've been lurking around here for a long time now and this is my first post.... Before I did an intro post I wanted to see if anyone would be willing to share some of the other sites you use other than this forum.... Not necesarily other forums (although those are good too) but also just informational type sites/blogs. Thanks in advance!

Whats up everybody
I am new at all to this forum, so just considered it may be fine introducing myself to the rest of the regular members ;)
I'm called Curtis and i'm 25ish old. Recently got intrigued in to all of the online social interaction.
Anyhow, enough the fluff and hope I am going to be taught a idea or two here ;)

Florida deep-sea explorers asked a federal appeals court Tuesday to overturn an earlier ruling that 17 tons of treasure recovered from a sunken Spanish galleon belongs to Spain, deepening a long-running battle over a trove worth at least $500 million that has unfolded not on the high seas but in federal courtrooms.
Attorneys for Odyssey Marine Exploration asked the three-judge panel of the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals to uphold the "finders keepers" rule that would give the treasure hunters the rights to silver coins, copper ingots, gold cufflinks and other artifacts salvaged about four years ago from the galleon off the coast of Portugal. Spain's lawyers countered that U.S. courts are obligated by international treaty and maritime law to uphold Spain's claim to the haul.